Currently, crude oil is the most important raw material to produce fine chemical substances, polymer materials, or medicines. However, there is a need to develop alternatives for replacing crude oil along with reduction in oil reserves as well as an environmental problem due to collection, transportation, and refinement of crude oil.
Biomass has emerged as one of these alternatives. Biomass may be an important source for producing hydrocarbon and chemical substances with a high added value.
Accordingly, recently, research has been conducted in various ways into a reaction for entire or partial reduction of cellulose to prepare bioethanol, hydrocarbon, or synthesized intermediate.
Various furan derivatives including furfural, hydroxymethyl furfural (HMF) and derivatives from biomass thereof are capable of being used as a raw material and intermediates of various chemical substances and, thus, may be an important raw material.
Although a furan derivative is capable of being inexpensively and easily obtained from carbohydrate, numerous researches into a reaction of a furan derivative using a metallic catalyst have been reported, but there is still a need for research into a reaction of a furan derivative that is capable of being commercially mass-produced due to a high yield under an eco-friendly or mild condition without using transition metal.
For example, Green Chem. 16, 516-47 (2014) discloses a method of preparing a biomass-derived material including furan or the like as a functional group in the form of a liquid fuel, or the like via various reactions.